Survival of the fittest during midterms week

It is that time of the the semester. It is Midterms week! You know what that means. Do not stress for this week, I decided to give you guys some tips on how to survive this week. These tips should prepare you tackle those exams and come out of that room confident that you did your best or even better knowing that you aced it! I will break my tips into several parts:) 

           These tip are for those of you who may have a week or more before you midterm exams:

Tip One: Study days in advanced

    I know that this is a common sense kind of tip but let's face it. We have other responsibilities in life, like work, family, and so forth or some just love to procrastinate. Getting caught in this web of having to tend to our other responsibilities outside school can really affect our academic performance. As for studying days in advance, instead of having that voice inside your head say, "Ugh. I have to study," make studying a habit. Make it part of your daily routine and before you know it, you are getting "A"s in your classes and that voice will be say, "Hey. I just studied that. I know that!"  

Tip Two: Find a study group of your own

If you are taking a course that you do not either like or just find difficult to understand, find people in your class whom you can study with, but make sure at least one of your group member understands what is going in class. Having a study group can help you better understand the material that you are having trouble with. If you are having trouble with a concept, there is bound to be another student who do not understand the same thing. You are also able to hear other students' understanding of a certain topic. For example, if I was a studying psychology and I do not understand what are the stages of moral development, I can turn to my group for help for a better understanding of what it is. Work together and collaborate. Team work!

The following tips are for those of you who might have less than a week to study:

Tip One: DO NOT CRAM Before and exam

I know that it is tempting to put aside studying the night before you take your exam. Trust me this is not a fool proof method. If you have less than a week, schedule in those study time in your daily schedule. Below is a sample of a student's schedule. You do not necessarily have to be like this. The purpose is not to follow your exact schedule, but to give you an idea of what you do with your time throughout the week. Just be flexible and stay on top of things.  

Tip Two: Organize any notes or study materials that you have for class

For each class, you have to do some form of note taking. Now, what you can do to formulate effective notes is to rewrite them. I know this is not ideal, but rewriting your notes in an organized way, meaning you use things like bullet points to avoid long paragraphs where I will show you below, will help you with remembering the information that you need. Also, if you have an exam that is mainly terminology, you can use flashcards where the term is on one side and the meaning is on the other side; this should help you memorize them.

• Keep the following in mind:
• Rewriting allows you to jog your memory to help you remember what you covered in class.
• Using bullet notes is easier to read than long paragraphs 
• Outlining works too
• Using flashcards can also be beneficial  

Note: If you can fill in missing information in your notes from simply looking at terms, then you are starting to store information in your brain.

The overall massage here is to try to take any unnecessary stress off your life, such as procrastination or last minute studying, because they will only cost you a hard time. Stay on top of things, keep yourself organized, and stay calm. I hope my tips come in handy for your. Feel free to give me feedback. Good luck:)